Australians on NBN Co’s Fixed Wireless Plus plan have seen improved broadband speeds following the completion of NBN Co’s fixed wireless upgrade program, ACCC said.
The download speed during peak hours increased from 86 Mbps in September 2024 to 93.3 Mbps in December 2024, while upload speeds rose from 8.3 to 11.5 Mbps. Despite these improvements, upload speeds remain below the plan’s 20 Mbps inclusion.
NBN Co has also introduced higher-speed fixed wireless plans, with some reaching download speeds of up to 500 Mbps, significantly surpassing previous records of below 100 Mbps. However, not all retail service providers offer these high-speed plans, requiring some customers to switch providers for access.
Fibre to the node (FTTN) connections continue to underperform, making up 87 per cent of underperforming NBN fixed-line connections. These services rarely achieve at least 75 per cent of their plan’s download speed, prompting the ACCC to encourage affected consumers to contact their broadband providers.
Satellite service performance has remained stable, with Starlink maintaining an average busy hour download speed of 162.2 Mbps in December 2024, slightly down from 165.5 Mbps in September. NBN Sky Muster services achieved 64.9 percent of their plan speeds, consistent with past performance.
The Measuring Broadband Australia report, conducted by UK-based firm SamKnows, now includes performance measurements for NBN Co’s new high-speed fixed wireless plans. These plans, available across 80 to 90 per cent of NBN Co’s fixed wireless footprint, benefit from overprovisioning, allowing for download speeds exceeding plan limits in optimal conditions. However, fixed wireless performance remains more variable than fixed-line services due to factors like distance from towers and weather conditions.
Baburajan K
